Cattle performance with Brachiaria and Panicum maximum forages in an integrated crop-livestock system

Abstract

Crop-livestock integration is an efficient technique that enables cropping and animal production in the same area, takes advantage of all the benefits that this synergism provides, and results in greater sustainability and lower environmental impact. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the production, forage quality, and cattle performance with forages of the genus Brachiaria and Panicum maximum after intercropping with soybean in an integrated crop-livestock system and to assess the relationship between mulch biomass and soybean yield. The experimental design was completely randomised and consisted of a 4 × 5 factorial arrangement with four replicates. The treatments consisted of four forages, namely, Xaraes palisadegrass (Brachiaria brizantha cv. Xaraés), Congo grass (Brachiaria ruziziensis), Mombaça guinea grass (Panicum maximum cv. Mombaça), and Tamani guinea grass (Panicum maximum cv. BRS Tamani), intercropped with oversown soybean, and these treatments were evaluated over five grazing cycles. The results showed that Mombaça guinea grass and Xaraes palisadegrass were associated with higher forage production, but the highest forage quality was obtained with Tamani guinea grass. Mombaça guinea grass, Xaraes palisadegrass, and Tamani guinea grass resulted in the best pasture performance of animals under grazing in the off-season and thus generated more benefits in terms of the soybean yield. Congo grass was associated with reduced production, lower forage quality and decreased animal production during the grazing cycles. The pasture establishment through soybean over sowing proved to be an efficient technique that reduced the environmental impact of livestock, because of the greater use of soil nutrients and resulted in greater sustainability.

Keywords: animal weight gain; integrated system; nutritional value; oversown; sustainability